


Adapting

by Bumblewish



Series: Era 3 to Rubies [2]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Anger Management, Canon Compliant, Coffee, Denial, Gen, Platonic Relationships, Post-Episode s05e29-32 Change Your Mind, Pre-Steven Universe Future, Steven Universe: Unleash The Light (Game), Team as Family, Time Skips, Wrestling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-14
Updated: 2020-04-14
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:20:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23653747
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bumblewish/pseuds/Bumblewish
Summary: Navy and her three Ruby companions, Doc, Leggy, and Army, get over the fact that Eyeball abandoned them and enjoy their first year of Era 3. Problems still persist. Sequel to Bluebird Rising; One-Shot
Series: Era 3 to Rubies [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1703032
Kudos: 18





	Adapting

**Author's Note:**

> Most tagged characters are just mentioned and name-dropped.

The Ruby, Navy, couldn’t help but feel somewhat nervous when she stepped off of the Galaxy Warp, following her squad, Doc, Leggy, and Army. There was another Ruby, Eyeball, in the squad, but she left to presumably hang out with her new Aquamarine friend, which perplexed her to no end. 

“I wish Ruby was here,” Leggy sighed with a wistful look. Navy and the other two Rubies understood exactly which Ruby Leggy was referring to. Even though Leggy was prone to forgetting things, the youngest Ruby wouldn’t forget the crew whom she spent her near five hundred years of existence with. Navy nodded to Leggy. “I do too,” she reassured Leggy. 

Army had a pouty look on her face. “It was a waste of time saving her,” she muttered. Navy couldn’t help but disagree, although she didn’t say it out loud. Army could be rather hostile when angry. Doc glanced back at Navy, Army, and Leggy and shrugged. “It doesn’t matter!” All four Rubies dropped the topic after that. 

Glancing around, Navy realized that she and the squad were in Steven’s beach house, although something had changed. “Hey! This is Steven’s house!” she told the other Rubies. Leggy grinned excitedly. “Let’s challenge him to another game of baseball!” Doc shook her head. “I don’t think anybody’s here,” she stated. It didn’t take long for Navy to realize that Doc was correct, but not for long.

The Galaxy Warp went off, making it’s iconic ‘shing’ noise before Navy and the other Rubies saw Steven on it. Steven glanced at them and smiled tiredly. He then looked back at the other side of his house. “Of course we get visitors the one time the gems aren’t home,” he breathed. “Well then, welcome! Let me get you settled in!” The hybrid glanced at his watch. “Or at the very least bring you over to the rest of the Earth gems while Bismuth, Peridot, and Lapis finish up the plans for Little Homeworld.” 

Navy chuckled nervously. “Oh, you mean that Peridot and Lapis?” Navy was aware of the fact that she would have to find a way to coexist among gems who she had wronged a little while ago when she stole her ship back to save the squad. Steven looked back at Navy before his eyes dawned with recognition. “Oh! You’re the Ruby squad! Sorry, Navy, It’s been a while and I don’t have a lot of time.” 

Leggy sighed. “So no baseball?” Steven had a thoughtful look on his face. “Maybe I could teach the Earth gems to play,” he said mostly to himself. “Ok, then! Follow me!” Navy thought about the odd name that Steven called her. It did seem like it would be easier to refer to herself as such than to be confused with the many other Rubies. Perhaps she could try it out with the rest of her team. 

Steven had just warped the Rubies to where the barn used to be when he glanced back at the four Rubies. “What happened to Eyeball?” he asked. Navy sighed while Leggy was the one to reply. “She left with that snobby blue gem!” she cried. Army just simply scowled, while Doc seemed to be pretending that Steven didn’t just ask them that. Steven just nodded. “I can work with that,” he told himself. 

Navy was the one to gasp when she saw the gaping hole where the barn used to be. How long had it been since she stole that ship!? “Where’s the barn?” Leggy asked. Steven sighed. “There was a friendship complication,” he told them, not exactly wanting to talk about it and move on. 

Steven eventually left the Rubies with the crowd after having a conversation with Pearl about having at least one of the Crystal Gems be at the Galaxy Warp, so they could welcome the new gems. Then, it was back to Homeworld for the young half-Diamond. 

Army was simply gawking at the sheer amount of Quartz soldiers gathered by the construction site. Navy found herself staring as well, especially when she noticed the horns and other mysterious markings on them. Navy eventually let her thoughts wander to her last mission. Could the ‘Kindergarten Quartz that Could’ be here? “Do you see any Jaspers?” Navy asked the other three Rubies. Leggy immediately shook her head. “What do Jaspers look like again?” Army glanced at Navy. “Aren’t Jaspers purple?” Army inquired while pointing to what seemed like a Lace Amethyst. Doc shook her head. “That was an Amethyst,” she told Army. “Is Jasper an Amethyst?” Leggy asked Doc. Doc facepalmed. “That was a trick!” 

Navy approached the Lace Amethyst. “Um… Lace?” The purple banded Quartz glanced down at the Ruby. “Yes?” she asked uncertainly. “Have you seen any Jaspers?” Lace nodded. “Of course! Are you looking for Ocean, Zebra, or Biggs?” “Yeah! Jasper’s big!” Leggy cut in. approaching Navy and Lace. “I don’t know who those are,” she replied. “I’m just looking for a Jasper with a nose gem.” Lace flinched. “That Jasper ran off a little while ago,” she told them. “Nobody’s seen her since!” Navy smiled. “Thank you,” she told Lace. Lace nodded. “Anytime, umm… do you have a nickname?” Navy shrugged. “Navy,” she replied. “I think?” Lace nodded again. “And what about you?” she asked Leggy. Leggy seemed confused. “I-I don’t know,” she told Lace. Navy remembered Steven called her Leggy when they first met. “I’m pretty sure it’s Leggy,” she replied for Leggy. Leggy nodded. “Yeah! That’s it! I’m Leggy!”

The two Rubies met back up with Doc and Army who somehow ended up in a tussle instead of watching out for their Jasper. “A Lace Amethyst told us that she saw Jasper a little while ago!” Navy told them. Doc and Army immediately stopped wrestling. “Really!?” they both said excitedly. “Yeah!” Leggy replied. 

It still took several months to find Jasper and by the time the Rubies learned of Jasper’s hiding place, the Rubies found a job where they were this mayor human’s body guards. To them, Mayor Nanefua was as important as a Sapphire. 

Navy and Army were off-duty while Doc and Leggy guarded Nanefua for the day. They’d switch over at sunrise the next day. The two gems were sipping their morning coffees at a table in front of the Big Donut, when the short Amethyst decided to visit them. “Hey Doc! Navy!” Amethyst greeted them. “Hello!” Navy casually greeted back. “Guess what!?” “What!?” Army asked with wide eyes. “Steven and I found Jasper the other day in the woods! ‘Thought you Rubies might want to say hi!” 

Navy nodded enthusiastically. “Show us the way, Ame!” Navy and Army followed Amethyst into the woods before stopping at the point where everything just looked beat up and dead. “Just a quick warning mah dudes, Jasper’s a bit cranky,” she told them. Army shrugged. “She probably hasn’t gotten the Homeworld out of her yet,” she simply replied. Navy smiled at how far she and the other Rubies had come after Yellow Diamond released them from their duties in the Homeworld Ballroom. 

Amethyst led Navy and Army to a cave in, pretty much, the middle of nowhere. “Yo, Jasper!” Amethyst called out. The purple quartz seemed to be ignored while Navy and Army shared a glance. “I brought a couple of familiar gems who wanted to see yah!” Seconds later, the Jasper jumped down from on top of the cave. “Who on this miserable excuse for a planet would want to see me!” “It isn’t that bad!” Army blurted out. 

Jasper glanced down at the two Rubies next to Amethyst and grimaced. “I already hate them,” she muttered at Amethyst. Army looked crushed and dejected while Navy simply scowled at her. “Well you’re the reason we came out here after making some Quartzes really uncomfortable!” Navy eventually realized that most of the Earth Quartzes, especially the Crystal Gem ones like Lace, Ocean, Biggs, Zebra, and Angel, were uncomfortable with the namedrop of Jasper. Navy eventually understood that this discomfort traced back to the war that Navy never got the chance to participate in when Pink Diamond faked her shattering. Navy was newly emerged when that event took place. 

Jasper rolled her eyes. “You found me,” she began. “Now leave!” Navy and Army were scowling while Amethyst simply shook her head. “Let’s just leave Sis to her lonesome,” she muttered, leading the two Rubies back to the Big Donut by noon. Amethyst quickly bid them goodbye and left after she got an alert that there were some Prism problems to take care of in Homeworld. “Sorry lil’ dudes, but Steven’s telling me that there’s some issue that could turn into a real emergency if we don’t take care of it,” she told them. 

Army glanced at Navy, now that the two Rubies are alone. “Well, at least Eyeball didn’t have to witness Jasper’s rejection,” Army claimed. Navy chuckled. “She would’ve absolutely hated that,” she agreed. “Imagine your idol, no your hero, rejecting you just because she can!” Army and Navy broke out into fits of laughter.


End file.
